Package wrapping and sealing apparatus



May 7, 1968 F. F. MQNKS PACKAGE WRAPPING AND SEALING APPARATUS Filed Aug. 16, 1965 mvsmon. FREDERICJS P. MONKS United States Patent Of 3,381,450 PACKAGE WRAPPING AND SEALING APPARATUS Frederick P. Monks, 158 W. 12th St., North Vancouver, british Columbia, Canada Filed Aug. 16, 1965, Ser. No. 479,957 8 Claims. (Cl. 53-390) ABSTRACT F THE DSCLOSURE Package wrapping and sealing apparatus having a base and movable cover provided with complementary heat sealing means and a -roll of sheet wrapping material rotatably mounted on the cover intermediately of the latter and the base to permit the material to be folded about a package to be wrapped when the cover is in an open position and the package sealed when the cover is moved to a closed position, A knife is carried on the base to sever the wrapping material between the package end roll when the cover is moved to a closed position.

This invention relates to an apparatus for forming individual sealed packages from a continuous sheet of heat scalable material.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a handy easily transportable packaging and heat sealing apparatus which may be operated to fold a scalable material, such as a cellophane or other like thermoplastic material, around an article such as food or lthe like to be wrapped, and which will automatically seal the then packaged article and, at the same time, sever the packaged article from the continuous web of material.

A further object of this invention is to provide an apparatus of this character which is relatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture and operate, and which may be operated by one individual either in the home or by a small producer.

A still further object of this invention is to provide apparatus -of this character which, during its operation, will provide a tight, taut lit of the Wrapping material about the article to be Wrapped.

In accordance with the objects hereabove stated, the invention comprises a base member, a cover member movably connected to the base member `for movement relative thereto between open and closed positions, a U-shaped heating element on one of the members, a U-shaped pressing foot on the other of the members being adapted to be arranged throughout its length in close proximity to the heating element when the cover member is arranged in its closed position, means for movably supporting a sheet of heat-scalable wrapping material on the cover member for movement in the direction of its length so as to permit the latter to be folded transversely of its length with portions thereof extending above and below the package to be wrapped and extending between and lapping the pressing foot and heating element so as to be heat-sealed when the cover member is moved to its closed position.

in the drawings which illustrate the invention,

FIGURE l is a plan view of the invention, showing in dotted lines, certain of the hidden features thereof,

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view of the invention taken along line 2-2 of FIGURE 1, showing in solid lines, the position of the wrapping material when the cover member is arranged in its closed position and, in dotted lines, when the cover member and wrapping material are arranged in its open position, and

FIGURE 3 is a sectional view of the invention taken along line 3-3 of FIGURE 2.

Referring to the drawings, the apparatus includes a base member of generally rectangular outline to one end 11 lCe hereinafter called the rear end of which is hingedly secured a cover member l2, the latter being hingedly movable as shown in FIGURE 2 from a closed position shown in solid lines thereon to an open position as illustrated with dotted lines.

The base member lll is formed of a heat resistant material and is provided with a centrally located Ueshaped raised portion 1S, the latter opening outwardly towards said rear end 11 and dening a recess generally accorded the numeral 16, the latter being adapted to receive a package 17 to be wrapped. This raised portion l5 may be formed integrally with the base member and has a centrally `grooved upper surface 18, the groove 19 therein opening upwardly to form a seat for a Uehaped electrical heating element Ztl, the latter chosen from one of many known types which is capable of rapid heating and cooling.

This heating element is seated in insulation 21 which lies below the upper edges of the walls of the groove.

The heating element is connected through a momentary Contact `pressure switch 23 operated by a plunger 2d to leads 25 which extend through a suitable aperture 245 formed in the base and which may be connected to any suitable source of power, not shown.

The base member 1li is also provided with `a tensioning and severing member 3th This latter member is formed as a transversely extending vertically elongated bar 3l which is located near the front end 33 of the base in front of the raised portion 15, the upper edge of said bar extending above the upper surface 18 of said U- shaped member 15 and has an upwardly extending knife blade 36 embedded therein. This knife blade may have a straight or serrated edge, the serrated edge being preferred.

The cover member 12 of the apparatus is also rectangular in shape having a rectangularly shaped cover section 40` and a deep depending continuous side skirt 42, the lower edge 43 of which is hingedfly connected as at 45 to the rear end 11 of the base member.

This cover plate may be formed of a molded heat resistant material, such as polypropylene, and has inwardly turned liange elements (t9 formed at the lower edge of the skirt and being positioned when the cover member is moved to Ia closed position so as to extend along either side of the recess lo formed by the U-shaped raised portion 15 of the base member. These ilange elements `49' serve as supports for a U-shaped pressing foot 51, the latter being molded of any heat resistant material and may be molded integrally with or fastened in any suitable manner to the flange elements. This U-shaped pressing foot is located centrally of the cover member 12, being maintained in vertically spaced relationship apart from the cover section 4@ thereof.

This pressing foot 51 has a corrugated undersurface 53 and is so located and is of suflicient size so that when the cover member l2 is moved from its open position to its closed position, `as shown in FIGURE 2, the undersurface 53 will extend throughout its length in close proximity to but not touching the heating element 2li.

As hereinbefore described, the wrapping material intended to be used shall be of a heat scalable type, preferably a cellophane or other similar thermoplastic which may normally be purchased in rolls of considerable length. The roll of material herein numbered 55 is to be mounted in the rear portion of the cover above and to the rear of the U-shaped pressing foot 51.

There is therefore mounted on the side skirts on opposite sides thereof, a pair of brackets 57 having upwardly opening slots 58 formed therein. These slots 52% rotatably receive the ends 59 and 68 of an elongated transversely extending shaft 62, the purpose of the latter being to support the roll 5S. This shaft is segmented intermediate its ends, each of the adjacent end portions i3 being threaded and being threadedly engaged with an internally threaded elongated sleeve element 64 whereby the shaft may extend or contract at will. Near each of the ends 59 and et? of the shaft are fixedly and nonrotatably secured a pair of circular plates 65 and 66 respectively between which the ends of the roll of material may be clamped and frictionally gripped. A brake drum 67 is secured to the shaft for rotation therewith adjacent the plate 66, said drum being frictionally engageable with a brake shoe 7d, the latter being afxed to one end 7l of a shaft 73 extending through the side skirt 42 and threadedly engaged therewith and being provided with a turning knob 75 at its other end 76, whereby the shoe ti may be moved towards or away from the drum 69. The drag afforded by the engagement of said shoe with the drum will therefore always provide tension in the wrapping material when being unwound from the roll. The tension, of course, may be varied by the appropriate setting of the shoe relative to the drum.

The web Si? of the material is unwound from the roll extending towards the front end of the cover member 12 between the cover section 4t) thereof and the U-shaped pressing foot Sil. It is then carried over a transversely extending freely rotatable guide roller 80 which is rotatably supported in suitable bearings Si in the front portion of the cover member, so that when the cover member l2 is moved from its closed position, said guide roller Sti lies in front of and above the bar 31. The cover member l2 is also provided with an arm 82 which may be formed as an integral part thereof and which, when the cover member l2 is moved between its open and closed positions, serves to operate the plunger 24 of the switch 23 between its open and closed positions, thereby energizing the electrical heating element 2t) only when the cover member is placed in its closed position.

In the operation of the apparatus, the cover member l2 is raised to an open position, as shown in dotted lines in FGURE 2, and the wrapping material herein numbered 85 drawn off the roll 55 over the guide roller 80 and arranged over the recess 16 with the free end 87 of said material lying over the knife blade 36 of the tensioning and severing member The package 17 is then placed over the wrapping material within the recess llo and the cover member then moved down to its closed position, as shown in solid lines in FIGURE 2. As the cover member moves to this position, the pressing foot 51 will be brought into engagement with the wrapping material which, by reason of the drag imposed on the roll ttl and by the reason of the frictional engagement of the package l5 therewith, will be drawn into a taut position between said pressing foot and the guide roll Si). Further movement will then draw the web material extending between the pressing foot and the guide roll titl into contact `with the knife blade 36 of the tensioning and severing member 3G. This action will further tighten the wrapping material and permit it to be either severed or perforated by the knife blade 36. At the same time, the pressing foot now presses the wrapping material into the groove il@ and close to but not touching the heating element Zt), the latter having been energized by the action of the switch 23. The cover member is permitted to remain in its closed position for a time sufficient for the heat from the heating element to effect a seal between the folded position of the web of material. IThe cover member l2 may then be lifted, the packaged article then removed from the recess 16 and the above process repeated with another article.

lt will be seen that as the severed end of the wrapping material always extends over the guide roll 8), any diiculties which might otherwise be encountered in the threading of the material between the pressing foot S1 and the cover section itl of the cover member 12 is eliminated. It will also be seen that as the wrapping material is now brought into engagement with the heating element 20 there will be no tendency for the material to seal itself to the latter, a common failure of most forms of apparatus of this type.

In order to aid in the operation of the cover member between its open and closed positions, -a handle may be provided at the front end of said cover member, and a coil spring 92 may be suitably placed at the hinged connection 45 of the cover member and base member normally engaging both members and arranged to normally urge the cover member i2 to its open position.

What l claim as my invention is:

1. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus comprising a base member, a cover member movably connected to the base member for movement relative thereto between open and closed positions, a U-shaped heating element on one of the members, a U-shaped pressing foot on the other of the members being adapted to be arranged throughout its length in close proximity to the heating element when the cover member is arranged in its closed position, means rotatably supporting a roll of heat-scalable sheet wrapping material on the cover member intermediate of the latter and the base member for movement in the direction of its length so as to permit said material to be folded transversely of its length with portions thereof extending above and below a package to be wrapped and extending between and lapping the pressing foot and heating element so as to be heat-sealed when the cover member is moved to its closed position.

2. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus comprising a base member, a cover member movably connected to the base member for movement relative thereto between open and closed positions, a U-shaped heating element in one of the members, a U-shaped pressing foot on the other of the members being adapted to be arranged throughout its length in close proximity to the heating element when the cover member is arranged in its closed position, means for rotatably supporting a roll of heatsealable sheet wrapping material on the cover member intermediate of the latter and base member for movement of said material in the direction of its length and in a continuous web, said material being foldable transversely of its length so as to extend above and below the package to be Wrapped and extending between and lapping the pressing foot and the heating element so as to be heat-sealed when the cover member is moved to its closed position, and severing means engageable with the web as the cover member is moved to its closed position to sever the Wrapped package and said web.

3. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus as claimed in claim 2 in which the severing means comprises a transversely extending vertically elongated bar having a knife edge at its upper edge arranged on the base member to engage and cut the web of wrapping material when the cover member is moved to its closed position.

4. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus comprising a base member, a cover member movably connected to the base member for movement relative thereto between open and closed positions, a U-shaped package receiving recess formed on the base member, a U-shaped heating element on the base member extending around and spaced outwardly of the recess, a U-shaped pressing foot on the cover member being adapted to be arranged throughout its length in close proximity to the heating element when the cover member is arranged in its closed position, means for rotatably supporting a roll of heatscalable sheet wrapping material on the cover member intermediate of the latter and base member for movement of said material in the direction of its length so as to permit the latter to be folded transversely of its length with portions thereof extending above and below the package to be wrapped and extending between and lapping the pressing foot and heating element so as to be heat-sealed when the cover member is moved to its closed position.

5. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus comprising a base member, a cover member movably connected to the base member for movement relative thereto between open and closed positions, a U-shaped package receiving recess formed on the base member, a U shaped heating element on the base member extending around and spaced outwardly of the recess, a U-shaped pressing foot on the cover member being adapted to be arranged throughout its length in close proximity to the heating element when the cover member is arranged in its closed position, means for rotatably supporting a roll of heatscalable sheet wrapping material on the cover member intermediate of the latter and base member for movement of said material in the direction of its length and in a continuous web, said material being foldable transversely of its length so as to extend above and below the package to be wrapped and extending between and lapping the pressing foot and the heating element so as to be heat-sealed when the cover member is moved to its closed position, and severing means engageable with the web as the cover member is moved to its closed position to sever the wrapped package and said web.

6. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus as claimed in claim 5 in which the severing means comprises a trans versely extending vertically elongated bar having a knife edge at its upper edge arranged in the base member so 6 as to engage and cut the web of wrapping material when the cover member is moved to its closed position.

7. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus as claimed in claim 6 including protective means on the base eX- tending above the heating element and engageable with the wrapping material so as to prevent contact of said wrapping material with said heating element.

8. Package wrapping and sealing apparatus as claimed in claim 6 in which said protective means comprises a U-shaped raised portion on the base having an upper wrapping material engaging surface, said upper surface being broken by an upwardly opening groove through which the heating element extends so as to lie below said engaging surface.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,695,483 11/1954 Toews 53-182 3,016,673 1/1962 Parker 53-390 3,262,833 7/1966 Zelnick 53-182 X 3,295,295 1/1967 Stewart et al. 53-390 WILLIAM W. DYER, JR., Primary Examiner. N. ABRAMS, Assistant Examiner. 

